A big change is brewing in the ranks of California's fastest-growing companies. The Times Growth 100 list has always been dominated by high-tech enterprises, and 1991 was no exception: About half the companies are in some way part of the computer industry. But a changing of the guard is underway. Computer manufacturers and chip-making companies are suddenly sliding down the Growth 100 list, and software companies are finding their way to the top.

The last thing Alza Corp. ever wanted was a monopoly. When G. D. Searle & Co. withdrew its intrauterine device from the market in January, 1986, Alza became, by default, the last drug company in America to sell an IUD.

In her 27 years on Wall Street, Lappin's all-time favorite stocks haven't changed a great deal. Her top pick remains Immunex Corp., a biotechnology firm. She believes investors who buy now will talk about it as do those who invested in Xerox in the late 1950s--a great buy up to $60 per share. Another favorite is Alza Corp., a maker of time-release drug delivery systems, including the transdermal system used by the new "patch" treatments for those wanting to quit smoking, up to $55.

Johnson & Johnson's Alza Corp. and Janssen Pharmaceutica filed a lawsuit seeking to block Mylan Laboratories Inc. from selling a version of Duragesic, a skin patch that administers painkillers. Alza, of Mountain View, Calif., said it owns the patent rights to the skin patch. Johnson & Johnson's Janssen, based in Titusville, N.J., is the exclusive U.S. distributor of Duragesic. The company said the Duragesic patch had worldwide sales of $875 million last year.

Johnson & Johnson, in its biggest deal ever, agreed Tuesday to buy Mountain View, Calif.-based Alza Corp. for about $10.2 billion in stock in a move to strengthen its drug pipeline and allow it to deliver medicines in better ways. The deal, which was expected following reports Monday, will give the New Brunswick, N.J., company several promising new drugs, including Ditropan XL for treating overactive bladder and Concerta, a treatment for attention deficit disorder.

Alza Corp. agreed to buy Therapeutic Discovery Corp. for $100 million, or $12.30 a share, reacquiring the developer of drug delivery systems that it spun off in 1993. Alza makes and licenses drugs that use novel delivery systems, such as skin patches, and Therapeutic Discovery develops the delivery systems for the drugs. At the time of the spinoff, Alza received an option to buy back Therapeutic Discovery's Class A stock, which represents virtually all of its equity.